


Cravings

by sekiharatae



Series: Ulfhednar [4]
Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Ulfhednar AU, Werewolf Cloud, wolf!Cloud
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:49:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25639060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sekiharatae/pseuds/sekiharatae
Summary: Cloud has a craving, but Tifa has concerns.
Relationships: Tifa Lockhart/Cloud Strife
Series: Ulfhednar [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/5121
Comments: 18
Kudos: 69





	Cravings

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jordypordy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jordypordy/gifts).



> For Jordy, who asked if I had any plans to return to this AU, which subsequently got me thinking about what kind of stories I could tell in it. This is probably not what anyone would have imagined I'd come up with, though...

As Cloud approached Seventh Heaven on Fenrir, the scent of Tifa’s double fudge brownies reached out to beckon him home. Their dark, sweet aroma wrapped around him like a fond embrace, the impression from his doubly-enhanced senses so strong that he literally could taste the chocolate.

In the realm of baked goods, Tifa’s brownies were king, and Cloud was powerless before them, a slave to their greatness. He’d been known to throw restraint out the window and eat an entire pan by himself. _More than once._ Which might be why she didn’t make them very often, although she claimed it was because they required a special cocoa that was only produced in Rocket Town. 

Pulling to a stop behind the bar, he wasted no time in putting Fenrir to rest and heading straight to the kitchen. His quarry were artfully arranged on a plate on the counter, and Cloud, enthralled, was just reaching out to grab one when Tifa spoke.

“Did you know that canids aren’t supposed to have chocolate?”

It was only due to his Ulfhednar nature that he managed not to startle. The human half had been so focused that he hadn’t consciously noticed she was there, while the wolf had zeroed in its mate immediately, reflexively testing her scent to verify all was as it should be–something the heavy sweetness in the air made difficult.

“I’m home,” he responded over his shoulder, brain still not quite registering what she’d said. And then, “What?” when her words finally processed. He couldn’t have heard that right.

“Chocolate is poisonous to canids.” The non-human half of an Ulfhednar wasn’t precisely the same as a Nibel wolf, but definitely similar enough to count as canid. “You could get sick if you eat any.” 

So he had heard right. Still, he wasn’t a wolf all the time, just some of it. “I’ll keep that in mind if anyone offers me chocolate in my wolf form.” And again he reached out to the stack of brownies.

“But what if something happens and you have to change forms post-consumption?” Setting aside the glass she’d been drinking from, Tifa moved closer, the vanilla-sugar scent of her skin fighting dark chocolate for prominence. In the back of his mind, the wolf rumbled its appreciation. "Like an emergency?"

This time Cloud turned to face her, one eyebrow arched. “An _emergency_ where I _need_ to be a _wolf_?” Skepticism was rife in his tone. 

“It could happen!” She shrugged innocently, palms spread in front of her, but her eyes were sparkling with humor or mischief or both.

“When was the last time there was an emergency where I needed to be a wolf?” Just saying the phrase was ridiculous, and he shook his head. “No, scratch that, when was the _first_ time there was an emergency where I needed to be a wolf?”

“There’s always a first time for everything, Cloud.” Hands on hips, she eyed him sternly. “What’s your contingency plan?”

His contingency plan? Was she serious? Cloud blinked, and fought the urge to whine. _He needed a brownie._ “In the event that an emergency arises in which I need to be a wolf,” Tifa’s lips twitched with repressed humor as he said it, prompting an answering eye-roll, “and I have recently consumed chocolate, then I’ll cast Resist on myself before I shift.” His delivery was flat. “And if I get sick while I’m a wolf,” he continued, because he could _see_ her getting ready to ask about such a thing, “I can always shift back.”

Tifa nodded agreeably. “That’s reasonable. I just wanted to be sure you knew.” Which, despite her teasing, was the honest truth. When a customer had told her about their dog being treated for chocolate toxicity, Tifa had briefly panicked. Cloud was not a dog, of course, but the wolf half of his Ulfhednar heritage was frightfully close. And the man loved sweets to the point of obsession. He’d walked into the kitchen like the scent of her brownies had wrapped around his brain and dragged him there. That coupled with his tendency to power through illnesses on the assumption that his enhancements–both mako and Ulfhednar–would take care of the problem was a recipe for disaster. 

“Ok. And now I do.” One hand raised, thumb pointing over his shoulder to the plate of brownies. “Can I have a brownie now?” His voice was _not_ plaintive.

Tifa’s lips twitched again. _Obsessed. Definitely._ “Of course.” 

Which struck Cloud as far too easy a concession. Eyeing her suspiciously, he slowly turned back to the plate of temptation, keeping her in view as long as possible. And, sure enough, as soon as both eyes were on the prize she stalled his quest again.

“But you’ll be setting a bad example for Denzel and Marlene if you do.”

And then he did whine, the sound high and distressed before shifting to her name. “ _Tifa!_ ”

Laughing, she moved to wrap her arms around his waist in a hug. “I’m sorry, but you know the rule: no snacks before dinner.” She pressed a kiss to his cheek, before skimming her lips over to his ear. “I made a second batch, just for you. But if we’re going to tell the kids they can’t have them, we shouldn’t either.”

Turning in her embrace, he tucked his face into the curve of her neck and shoulder. Mouth open against her skin, he breathed deep of vanilla, sugar, and _Tifa_. It was a sweetness that was all her own, and uniquely addicting. “A whole pan?” he asked, tone considering. 

She shivered at the caress of his breath. “Mmm-hmm.” With effort, she managed to sound knowing and a touch smug rather than betraying the sudden weakness in her knees and spine. “As long as you behave.”

He sighed. “It’s not nice to tease.” She _knew_ how much he loved her brownies. 

Unseen, she grinned unrepentantly. “I know. But you should have seen yourself! So focused and intent!” The very picture of a man on a mission. “I was almost jealous.” 

“Jealous?” Cloud leaned back, revealing blond brows arched in surprise. “Of brownies?”

“Well, no. Of the way you were looking at them. You walked right by me. No hello, no kiss, nothing.” 

That prompted a slight flush, and one hand released her to rub sheepishly over the nape of his neck. “The wolf knew you were there.” 

She kissed him on the tip of his nose. “I’m not jealous, Cloud. I can share you with my brownies.”

He huffed a laugh. “I’d rather have you.”

Abruptly, she found herself lifted and thrown over his shoulder, and then he was walking out of the room in that smooth, long-legged stride that always made her think of a wolf on the hunt.

“Cloud!”

“I still want something sweet, Tifa. If I can’t have a brownie for a treat, I’ll have you.” Her brownies were undeniably fantastic, but the taste of vanilla, sugar, and spice covering his tongue in heated welcome? There was nothing finer. “It might take me some time to get my fill.” The promise in his voice was richer than the chocolate abandoned in the kitchen.

Tifa swallowed against the immediate rush of desire, but kept her silence as he started up the stairs to their room, only speaking again when he hit the landing. “I have to start dinner in forty-five minutes.” 

With one arm curled around her legs to steady her on his shoulder, his free hand came up to pat her rump. “I can work with that.”

Then the bedroom door slammed behind them, the springs on the bed bounced, and Cloud set about feeding his craving.


End file.
